A message from Matthew Cook
SeaView Systems philosophy in providing our clients with clever solutions to unique challenges.
I have been working in the marine industry since 1986 and specifically with Remotely Operated Vehicles since 1992. SeaView was incorporated in September 1998 but for the first 4 years or so I was pretty much working as a freelance contractor to the Offshore Oil and Gas industry. I started operations in 2003, literally working out of my garage. The reason I started up this company is that I was looking for a way to express technical creativity. Working Offshore was a great job and we got to do very interesting projects but it was always someone else’s project and our job was just to execute it.
I was really hungry for an opportunity to stretch and grow my own technical and operatonal ability. As time has gone by I have been very fortunate to be a part of a team that is much bigger than just our small shop. SeaView is the unifying member of our team of a handfull of small businesses, much like ourselves, who have expertise in what we do.
As you look through the projects and solutions shown on this website I think you will quickly understand that what we have been able to achieve is much more then the efforts of the five SeaView employees but rather the result of our efforts along with those of many small companies coming together. In many ways, I see Seaview Systems as a facilitator and focal point for these various skill sets.
Back in 2003 we performed our first long distance pipeline inspection with our in-house developed ROV that we called the LDROV or Long Distance ROV. That penetration was just shy of 5000ft but it was tricky since we had to get through a buterfly valve in a 42″ line. I took an off-the-shelf SeaBotix LBV150, built up a fiber optic control bottle, installed two external thrusters (one on top and one on bottom so we could get through the butterfly valve) and designed and built a surface power supply that could handle the voltage drop over the long distance.
I remember when we finished up that job, I was just so excited. It was a really big deal for me since it was the realization of a dream. I had been looking for a niche in the industry, something that nobody else at the time had the capability to perform and I had found it. At that time there were one or two companines in the country who could make an inspection penetration of that distance but none could do that penetration while passing through a 20″ restriction. And it was through taking basic components and using the skills I had put together over the years that I was able to build the vehicle and address a need that was going unaddressed. It seemed like a business in a box! It wasn’t till later that I realised that one good idea was not going to be enough and that our real strength is not in one good idea but the ability to come up with good ideas over and over and then have the experience to execute them.
I’m telling you that story since that project has become a prototype of what has become our typical job. Our typical job is one that it is not straightforward, it has wrinkles and time restraints. It has access restraints and physical awkwardness and a heap of other issues that must be overcome. To pull these projects off successfuly over and over requires innovation and technical expertise and the ability to change directions on the fly. It’s not just the talent we have here at SeaView that allows us to succeed. Our recipie for success is to identify talent and then surround ourselves with clever, experienced 3rd party individuals who we can bring in to support us on an as-needed basis. This way we are able to broaden our scope and offer our customers value without taking on a lot of overhead.
So check out the Solutions pages and once you’ve got to know a bit more about us and if you you feel that we might be able to help, we encourage you to give us a call. We’ll briefly go over your project and if we both believe that we can provide value and solutions SeaView will prepare some options for you and set up a meeting where we can review them together. If it turns out we can’t help, we can refer you to someone who we know in the industry who will be better suited to your needs.
I look forward to your call.
Matthew Cook
President, SeaView Systems
